Judge Moore dismisses Deen suit

U.S. District Judge William T. Moore Jr. on Monday dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit against Savannah celebrity chef Paula Deen.

The judge’s action means the suit by former Deen employee Lisa Jackson cannot be refiled.

Moore, however, retained jurisdiction to proceed with possible sanctions against the lead plaintiff attorney despite a motion by Deen’s attorneys to dismiss it.

The decision reinforces the court’s “inherent authority to regulate the conduct of attorneys who practice before it,” Moore said.

On Friday, attorney Harvey Weitz, one of Deen’s team of lawyers, filed a proposed agreement to dismiss the case with prejudice. The agreement awarded no costs or fees to anyone but awaited action by Moore before it became final.

Also on Friday, Weitz filed a motion to dismiss a motion filed by Deen’s former legal team to sanction Atlanta attorney Matthew Billips for what they contended was unprofessional conduct by using vulgar and offensive statements and threatening defendants through possible media attention.

In response, Moore said the defense request “does not prevent this court from sanctioning (Billips) for his conduct in this case.” He has ordered Billips to file written responses within 20 days “after which the court will schedule a hearing on this matter.”

Jackson, a white female, sued Deen and her business enterprises, alleging she had been the victim of sexual harassment and a persistent pattern of racial discrimination in the workplace during her five-year employment at Uncle Bubba’s Seafood and Oyster House Inc. on Whitemarsh Island.

The site is partly owned and operated by Earl W. “Bubba” Hiers Jr. who is Deen’s brother and was a co-defendant in the case.